Below is a briefing from Police Scotland on changes they plan to make to policing in Edinburgh based on a trial in Aberdeen. The change means that they may no longer investigate every low level crime where there is no CCTV or witnesses. Clearly, underfunding by the Scottish Government is the issue here – Scotland needs change.

Briefing
I am writing to provide you with a local update on our Proportionate Response to Crime (PRC).

As you may be aware a 12-week project was piloted in the north east of the country between September and November 2023. Following full evaluation Police Scotland intends to roll out its Proportionate Response to Crime investigation process across the country. This will be carried out in phases with ongoing engagement and evaluation.

The project will go live in Edinburgh on 27^th May 2024.

Under the process, every crime reported to us is assessed for threat, harm, risk, vulnerability and for proportionate lines of investigation and evidence as soon as it is reported.

This enables an efficient assessment of the report that helps us quickly respond to those that are most urgent and to reduce police attendance where this is not required.

It also means callers will be better informed about the progress of their report, rather than waiting days for officers to attend only to inform them of the same outcome.

I am aware that the introduction of the process may raise some questions and I am happy to speak to you to explain how this will be applied in Edinburgh.

I would also like to reassure you that this doesn’t mean we are not investigating crime – the process will give local officers more time to focus on local concerns, keeping people safe from harm, protecting the vulnerable, bringing criminals to justice, solving problems, and reducing offending.

We are asking people to continue to report crimes to us – all information is recorded and provided to us for assessment, and it can be used to tackle crime trends and emerging issues in the area.